just because

i love this girl so much...

Reprieve

Today the high in Dallas was only 80 degrees!!!!!! It was cloudy, overcast, and there was even, at times, a small breeze.

It was heavenly.

We played outside, took a walk, and even played at the park (something we haven't been able to do since May). Saylor was SOOOOOOO excited about the swing and the slide, she was about to bust at the seams when she realized we were going to the park.

So thankful for a slight reprieve in the heat! I know it will be back, but we've sure enjoyed it today!

Dear Fall: we can't wait for you to arrive!!!

highlights from this week

So we are doing some kitchen remodeling. Exciting but so exhausting and never-ending it seems. Here are highlights from this last week:

• Numerous trips to Lowe's with toddler in 105 degree heat. Too many to count. We are now buddies with a couple of the salespeople
• Toddler not happy at said trips to Lowe's, cranky, whiny, throws two packages of light bulbs on ground and they shatter (luckily, said buddies let us off the hook on buying them).
• Toddler unsupervised at home for 5 minutes finds the spices (currently stored on floor in guest bedroom) and opens them. When I find her covered in cumin and tarragon, she looks at me, scowling, and says "Oh no! Dirty! No ma'am"! ("No ma'am is pretty much her favorite thing to say right now. Guess she has heard it a lot. Funny at first, now not so much).
• Brand new sink gets stolen from contractor's truck in front of our house (he had only been inside 5 minutes). So apparently we must live in the ghetto.
• Husband stressed with end of summer work project, working late until 8 or 9
• Cat gets stuck in the crawl space under our house
• Still hating the teeth brushing with a passion
• Mild runny nose turns into double ear infections and pinkeye

Oh how this week I wished we lived closer to our family. I keep thinking about single moms and parents with special needs kids. God bless them, I seriously don't know how they do it.

Luckily, we are now on the up and up. Thankful for antibiotics and a new week starting now!

The worst part of the day

                                                    It starts out ok, like this:

But very quickly turns into this:

and this:

This girl hates brushing her teeth terribly. We have tried singing songs, taking turns, making it into a game, everything I can think of. No success. She just hates it. 

Just in case you wanted to see one of the not so pretty moments from our daily routine. :)

photo updates

Here are some recent photos from the past few weeks. I can't believe how quickly summer is coming to an end!

On a walk with Harper

Eating lunch with our friends Mark and Becky in Houston. Here Mark is "styling" the macaroni hair. :)

Took her awhile to warm up but of course she loves him. How can you not?

This was a dog (i think?) outside the restaurant. Love these two friends!

Hanging out with Will Thompson. At first she kept her distance.

Then went in for a kiss! He is such a cutie!

My Uncle Mike and Aunt Ann came for a visit last week. Here is Uncle Mike reading a special book they brought for Saylor. Each page has a special fairy that spells out her name. She loves it and requests "fairies" now multiple times per day!

Again, she was shy at first, but quickly realized that Uncle Mike is just a big kid and super fun to play with!

Swinging with Unlce Mike

The three of them. We loved getting to see them on their way home to Florida! Such a special treat for us! (Can you see the resemblance between Mike and my dad? I can)!

Just a couple around the house. Wearing the multi-layed headband as necklace look here.

Trying out her new potty! We are NOT potty training, I just bought her this because she talks about pee pee and poo poo all the time and I figured it couldn't hurt to get her used to it. She did actually pee in it right away, but mainly she just likes to sit down and stand up repeatedly.

Hammin' it up for the camer! (My sister gave her this shirt). ;)

I can see clearly

Today I am reflecting on the goodness of God.

Sometimes I get so caught up in the shuffle of life. Caught up in my own thoughts on faith. Caught up in everyone else's thoughts on faith. Things can start to get hazy. Fuzzy. My thoughts get jumbled. The "big issues" make my head hurt.

Today I am thankful for the sweet moments God gives us, every now and then, to remember that it's all really quite simple. A few moments where the hazy veil is lifted, and I can see clearly, the Gospel. Not watered down or cluttered up. Just the Gospel.

I need Him. Very, very much.

He loves me. Very, very much.

He made a way. Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ bring freedom. healing. restoration. hope.

And for a short time anyways, I am reminded, and I can see clearly.  :)

Daddy Daughter Day

Saylor and Matt had a daddy daughter day this past Saturday while I went to work. They had a fun day together and Matt later told me that these days are crucial and necessary for their bonding, so we need to do them more often! :) 

When I got home they showed me a fun new game they invented. It's called: wear your swim diaper as a hat! Saylor thought this was hilarious and now loves playing this game. She'll bring Matt and I one of these and say "hat, hat, hat." until we put it on our head or hers.

(They did have one small mishap related to forgetting the diaper bag/extra diapers while waiting in line for a snow cone, which is why she is wearing only a diaper in these pictures. This was actually a pretty funny story when told by Matt).

Sorry there are so many pictures...I am having trouble with my computer and too impatient to sort them out.